Title
Duke Energy Green Source Advantage Bridge Program
Action
Action:
A. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a service agreement for solar energy generation with Duke Energy Corporation, Cypress Creek Renewables Inc., South Davidson Solar, LLC, and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates for the city’s participation in Duke Energy’s Green Source Advantage Bridge Program, for a term of twenty years, and
B. Authorize the City Manager to amend the agreement consistent with the purpose for which the agreement was approved.
Body
Staff Resource(s):
Sarah Hazel, Office of Sustainability & Resilience
Explanation
§ Duke Energy’s Green Source Advantage Bridge program (GSA) is a renewable energy program for large North Carolina customers who want to support the development of renewable resources while meeting their sustainability goals and lowering their carbon emissions.
§ The GSA program offers large customers the flexibility of selecting and negotiating all price terms directly with a solar developer of their choice, including the purchase of renewable energy certificates generated by that facility.
§ The GSA Program allows the city the option to partner with a solar developer for the development of a utility-scale solar installation to mitigate a portion of the City of Charlotte’s carbon emissions associated with the city’s energy use.
§ On May 3, 2023, the city issued a Request for Proposals (RFP); three proposals were received.
§ The 80 megawatt (MW) South Davidson Solar Project proposed by Cypress Creek Renewables, located in Davidson County, best meets the city’s needs in terms of qualifications, experience, cost, and responsiveness to the RFP requirements.
§ The average annual cost of this project is modeled to be $1.169 million per year for twenty years which will be split between enterprise funds and the General Fund.
§ The South Davidson Solar Project, once operational, is expected to produce approximately 151,536 MWh of renewable energy per year which is the equivalent of powering 13,535 homes or planting 1,775,718 trees annually.
§ This average annual premium for solar energy produced is 3.4 percent of the city’s annual energy spend, which totaled $34,100,000 in 2022.
§ The city will not incur any expenditures until the solar farm is completed and the energy comes online.
§ This new project under GSA Bridge is projected to bring the city within 19 percent of achieving our Strategic Energy Action Plan (SEAP) 2030 zero carbon building’s goal. With this project, and additional investments, the city will be firmly on a trajectory to meet the SEAP 2030 zero carbon building’s goal.
Fiscal Note
Funding: Various Departments’ Operating Budgets
Attachments
Attachment(s)
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